Crowe Dunlevy is once again proud to be the presenting sponsor of the 2026 SHRM Oklahoma Annual State Conference – Drive to tHRive. We can’t wait to join more than 500 of Oklahoma’s human resource professionals April 30 – May 1, 2026, at the Arvest Convention Center in Tulsa, Ok.
Register today and make plans to attend our breakout sessions, swing by our booth in the exhibit hall and join our cast of Labor & Employment Practice Group attorneys for an entertaining and interactive skit that will help HR professionals who are looking to stay ahead in HR’s race for sanity in the workforce.
Breakout sessions on Thursday, April 30, 2026:
Pit Stops & Paperwork: Navigating the ADA Accommodation Race. | 9:15 AM – Chris Vaught
This program provides a practical, in-depth examination of two of the most challenging and frequently litigated aspects of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): the hiring process and the employer’s obligation to engage in the interactive process. Designed for HR professionals and business leaders, the presentation focuses on where compliance most often breaks down – and how to get it right.
Learning objectives for this presentation include:
- Identify high-risk ADA compliance failures in the hiring process, including improper medical inquiries, unlawful qualification standards, and “regarded as” exposure triggers that often arise before day one.
- Distinguish between permissible and impermissible pre-employment communications, with practical guidance on how to evaluate applicants without creating liability under the ADA.
- Apply a structured, defensible interactive process framework that meets legal obligations while maintaining operational efficiency and documentation integrity.
- Recognize and correct common breakdowns in the interactive process, including delay, inadequate documentation, failure to explore accommodations, and premature termination decisions.
Advanced Issues in Wage and Hour Law. | 2:45 PM – Madalene A.B. Witterholt
This past year has seen a lot of changes, most of them harkening back to a kinder gentler time a.k.a. more employer friendly. In the last 12 months, we have seen nearly a dozen Department of Labor (DOL) opinions, proposed rules related to independent contractors and new twists on the computation of hours worked. Since the DOL oversees the FMLA, we will give you insight into leave interpretations and bring you up to date on the importance of DOL decisions and their hidden impact on day-to-day policies and procedures. Learn about where we are going with independent contractors and how some odd FMLA cases are indicative of where the computation of our work is finessed.
This session will utilize a short lecture and then hands-on scenarios and policy development to find ways to implement what we have learned about DOL rules, regulations, and case law.
